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The Bizarre Truth Behind the Voice Channel

With organizations focussing on the customer experience as a key differentiator, it’s critical that they pay close attention to consumer channel activity. As we all know the options are endless: self-service, chat, mobile apps, social media, email and the conventional phone channel. It’s no wonder why call centers have now truly become contact centers as they support customers through a variety of mediums, countries, and languages.

As time passes, digital channels will continue to grow in popularity, but what will happen to the voice channel? Dimension Data’s 2016 Global Contact Centre Benchmarking Report stated that there will be growth in every digital channel, and a 12% shrinkage with the phone. The report also went on to say “that digital volumes handled by contact centers remain on track to exceed phone contacts by the end of 2016”. However, ContactBabel reported that over 65% of contact centers anticipate no change in the voice channel for the next 12 months. So which one is it?

Is the phone channel getting lost in digital noise or will it remain a prominent medium?

Imagine, not having the option to pick up the phone and speak to a live agent. This is pretty bizarre if you sit down and really think about it. Some say it’s bound to happen, others can’t wrap their minds around that realization.

Industry insiders seem to have conflicting views about the future of the voice channel and the role it will play in the contact center. Listen to this live conversational debate for a clear-cut answer to this burning question.